In a modern trend, laundry appliances are taking on a more visually prominent role in the home, serving as statement pieces reflecting individual style. Consequently, the aesthetics of the laundry appliance is an important factor in the design of a laundry appliance and its components. For example, it is desirable to provide a laundry dryer door construction which is consistent with, or complimentary of, the accompanying washer door construction, which may be constructed with plastic components, as well as to provide laundry dryer door parts which have a “look and feel” which is consistent with, or complimentary of, each other and/or other parts of the dryer, which may be constructed of plastic.
Conventional laundry appliances generally include a frame assembly constructed of either steel or plastic. Steel is the most flame resistant of the materials typically used. However, steel has several disadvantages as a construction material for an appliance door. For example, a single thickness generally is not suitable to increase the overall strength and rigidity of the door construction, due to the excessive weight. Steel is also limited by its formability, which constrains the door construction geometry. To decorate and provide rust resistance, steel requires secondary operations (e.g., paint). Even then, a steel door may not optimally match portions of a washer or dryer that are constructed of plastic.
In comparison to steel, plastic is more versatile. A plastic door can readily be constructed with variable wall thickness and geometry to provide interlocking features and overall door rigidity. Plastic does not rust, and a plastic door can provide a better aesthetic match with other plastic components of the associated laundry appliances. The main disadvantage to plastic is that it is not flame-resistant like steel. Therefore, in the event of a fire, for example in a laundry dryer, a plastic door may burn or otherwise lose its structural integrity. If this happens, the door cannot reliably contain flames inside the drum, or maintain a barrier shielding a user from exposure to any excessive heat or flames within the appliance drum.
Laundry appliances with frame assemblies comprising separately formed and adjoined plastic and metal structures have been proposed. For example, U.S. Application Publication No. 2006/0265899 (Renzo), discloses a clothes dryer door assembly including a metal inner frame, an outer mask frame, and an outer window of plastic material. U.S. Application Publication No. 2004/0020073 (Lee et al.), proposes a laundry dryer top cover assembly that uses a flame resistant plate secured under a separate plastic top cover to provide both an aesthetically pleasing exterior of the dryer body and a flame resistant internal cabinet. A need remains for an integrated door frame assembly that provides the advantages of both steel and plastic, particularly one of the porthole variety suitable for use in a laundry appliance.